Hector High School senior Bryant Haralson signs with Crowder College on Friday inside the Hector Wildcat Mult-Purpose building. Bryant hopes to sharpen his skills at the two-year college and move on to play for the Arkansas Razorbacks. (THE COURIER / Travis Siimpson)

HECTOR — “The road begins here,” Hector High School senior Bryant Haralson told a Wildcats Multi-Purpose Building full of students, friends and family after signing a National Junior College Athletic Association (NCJAA) letter of intent to play baseball at Crowder College.

“Not just for me, but for everyone.”

Haralson’s father and coach, Jeff Haralson looked on with pride.

“It’s beyond belief for us, as both a father and a coach,” Jeff said. “As a coach, I’ve had two guys go on to play college ball. We were able to get them tryouts and they were able to play. But Crowder actually pursued Bryant, and the fact that he’s mine just adds to that.”

Bryant has signed primarily as a pitcher, where he hopes to hone his skills throughout Crowder’s two-year program — which finished the 2012 season with a 44-17 record, advanced to the Regional 16 championship game and also earned a berth in the 2010 NJCAA World Series. Bryant is young for his age, having started school a year early.

“I’m excited Crowder has given me the opportunity to play ball for them,” he said. “I’ll hopeful get to work on improving my pitching. After two years at Crowder, I want to go on to a four-year college and hopefully play for the Hogs.

“Mentally, I want to get more developed — knowing how to play to the game, when to throw what kind of ball. After four years, if God is willing, I’ll be able to play in the big leagues.”

Those are big dreams from such a small town, but Bryant can back it up. With 166 strikeouts last year, he ranked second in the nation from the mound. He throws an 89 mph fastball, but Jeff said it’s his slider that intrigued the colleges.

“It’s his breaking ball,” Jeff explained. “He can throw a 12-6 slider. That’s the the thing that’s going to help him in his career — the fact that he spins it so well.”

It’s also what many coaches refer to as “intangibles” that garnered Bryant collegiate attention.

“He does a lot by the way he plays. He talks to the younger guys and helps them with certain things they are doing,” Jeff said.

Bryant said his family played a key role both in him being able to play college baseball and the decision where to attend college and play baseball.

Crowder University is located in Neosho, Mo. — far enough from his family to spread his wings, but not far enough to inconvenience them when they come to watch him play.

“Crowder was a good fit for me. It’s three hours away, and I didn’t want the drive for my parents to be horrible,” he said.

And according to Bryant, everything he learned about baseball he learned from his father.

“When I do something wrong, people always assume that I get it so much worse than the other kids,” Bryant said. “Well, I do. I get it there and then I get it at home, but he does that to everyone because he wants them to succeed.

“I like my dad being my coach. He cares about every single person on the team, and I wouldn’t be where I am today without him.”

After signing his letter of intent in front of his school and family, Bryant stood before the crowd with a smile on his face.